Notes from the Field: Always plant extra for the animals!

Sometimes the best lessons come in very short stories, especially in the middle of a very busy work day.

The busy work day was during my recent trip to Pine Ridge with a group of volunteers – mixing mud, plastering, gathering clay and hauling it back to the worksite – all to repair one of the demonstration straw bale houses at the Red Cloud Renewable Energy Center. We were very lucky to have Henry take a break from his work to spend a few minutes sharing his ideas and advice over some fresh tea.

Talking about the Solar Warrior Farm project, he said they always plant more than they need. He described watching the rabbits, horses, deer and other animals munching away in the garden with a certain fondness and joy. Not the most typical attitude toward animals in the garden (think Farmer McGregor and poor Peter Rabbit).

Hailey, a Lakota teenager, works on mudding the straw bale home at the Red Cloud Renewable Energy Center.

But then he said, “It’s OK for them to eat food that’s right there in their house. That’s still their house even if it’s part my house, too. I know if I went in my house and saw free food, I’d eat it, you know? So, I always plant extra food for the animals!”

Thank you Henry for sharing what you do and what you have with others around you, and helping remind me of how we can do this every day in our homes, our relationships and our work. Yakoke!